Swedish football has reached a crossroads; the national team is looking for a new way forward after turning its back on the old. Janne Andersson, the coach, rejected Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s rather public statement of availability, two years after he retired having not played a minute in qualification, before naming his squad for this summer’s World Cup in Russia. Some may have viewed Ibrahimovic’s desire to return for the biggest stage as selfish, but as tempted as he may have been to allow for his country’s biggest name’s return, Andersson stood firm, recognising Sweden’s need for a new star. Fortunately, they have found one; Red Bull Leipzig winger Emil Forsberg.
The Bundesliga may have given him the platform to showcase his qualities to a wider audience but, by the time he signed for Leipzig, a small club bankrolled by the Austrian energy drink and sport franchise giants Red Bull, he was already well on the way to relative superstardom in his homeland. Money and connections afforded to the then second division minnows by the company, who also own football teams in Salzburg and New York and a Formula One team, too, has accelerated Leipzig’s journey to the highest level in Germany and Europe.
Forsberg joined in 2015, having shone at Malmö and made his Sweden debut, and he played a vital role in helping them to promotion by being voted the Player of the Season in 2. Bundesliga; he took off the next season, though, starring as Leipzig challenged Bayern Munich for the league title and ultimately qualifying for the Champions League.
His blend of technique and hard work made him hot property around Europe the following summer; Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp, believed to be a huge fan of Forsberg, was tracking his progress. Sweden, as a nation, have never truly recovered from the dismantling of the team that took them into the knockout stages of Euro 2004; Freddie Ljungberg, Olof Melberg and Henrikh Larsson would retire over the ensuing years, and while Ibrahimovic grew into a talismanic superstar, the talent pool around him significantly decreased in quality.
Forsberg is the main attraction in a team that has missed out on the last two World Cups and finished bottom of their group, picking up just one point, at Euro 2016. The pressure and expectation of the Swedish public has lowered, but they will be demanding a lot of Forsberg, who will come up against clubmate Timo Werner when Sweden face Germany in Sochi on June 23, alongside Mexico and South Korea in Group F.
The squad selected by Andersson has very few household names and, while there aren’t too many young players heading to Russia, there is plenty of inexperience. Forsberg as 34 caps and six goals for his country, so even if he wasn’t viewed as their star, he would still be one of the squad’s senior members. At 26 years old, he is approaching the peak years of his career; the World Cup is coming at the right time and he has an opportunity to impress. Injuries have stunted his progress somewhat this season; Forsberg only played 21 Bundesliga games and scored two goals. Leipzig were also knocked out of their Champions League group, along with Monaco, by Besiktas and FC Porto, but they did reach the Europa League quarter-finals and the Swede set up Werner to score the only goal in the first leg with a swift counter-attack. Marseille then won 5-2 to progress to the semis and eventually the final, but that was just a glimpse of what a fully fit Forsberg is capable of, and what he will bring to Sweden this summer.
Germany and Mexico will look to dominate the ball more than Sweden and South Korea, so Forsberg will be more important in transitions in those games, but he is very much the modern day winger, somebody who plays narrower in order to dictate the play. Hamburg midfielder Albin Ekdal, still rebuilding his career having spent time as a journeyman in Italy with Juventus, Siena, Bologna and Cagliari, will assist Forsberg creatively in the middle of midfield, while former Sunderland man Sebastian Larsson will sit deeper, allowing the Leipzig star more freedom to impact the game higher up the pitch. It is easy to see why Klopp is such a fan, because he can bring more control and balance to a team immense pace, just like Liverpool. That is what he does for Leipzig, alongside the likes of Kevin Kampl, Werner and Portuguese winger Bruma, but he shows a different side to his game, as the main instigator, for Sweden.
Previous Sweden teams have looked a lot better on paper, but Janne Andersson is still attempting to negotiate a tough transitional period. Not a lot is expected of them as a whole, but Emil Forsberg is vital to their chances. Europe’s best have been impressed, and it is easy to see why; after a tough season for many different reasons, Leipzig’s quiet star will be thrust into the limelight this summer, with the hopes of a nation weighing on his shoulders.
